


Haven

by geeky__chick



Series: BlackHawk Ficlet Series [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-19
Updated: 2014-11-19
Packaged: 2018-02-26 06:51:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2642234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/geeky__chick/pseuds/geeky__chick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of <i>Captain America: The Winter Soldier</i>, Agents Barton and Romanoff reunite.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Haven

**Author's Note:**

> Missing Moment #1 for Ficlet Series. More to follow!

**Haven**  

 

 

She couldn’t go back.

            Everything she had known for almost a decade was gone, betrayed from within. There were no more secrets, no more covers, nothing left of the life she’d built after that fateful night in Paris. It was that night that changed everything, when it wasn’t her choice that determined the rest of her life.

            It was  _his_  choice.

            This time, however, Natasha was able to choose for herself.

            She left Washington in a rented car, which she returned just over the border in the Texas panhandle. Then, it was a bus to Phoenix. Finally, a train to Portland, where she caught a flight with the one identity no one knew about.

            The one identity she hadn’t shared, in case the worst ever happened.

            It was a long flight, so much so that it reminded her of the return from Budapest. Natasha had held him in her arms for hours, afraid that releasing him might mean he would give up the will to survive. If she held him, though, he would pull through. Natasha sometimes felt the only way she knew she was alive was because she  _willed_  Clint Barton to life as well.

            It was nearing midnight when she landed in Nome, but she was still able to rent a car for the rest of her journey. The two-week long trip might have been excessive, even given the amount of targets on her back. She couldn’t be too careful, though. Leading Hydra or S.H.I.E.L.D. or even the world’s press core to Alaska wasn’t an option.

            So, the four-hour drive into the wilderness took eight. It might have been overkill, but Natasha was willing to take four extra hours to ensure she wasn’t being tailed.

            Sprawling trees lined the valley as Natasha drove. Snowcapped mountains that looked too perfect to be reality rimmed the horizon, deadly beautiful in an ethereal way. She knew this trip like the back of her hand. The beauty of it never ceased to amaze her.

            The car was abandoned along the highway, with a note claiming it was out of fuel. Someone would come along and tow it within a few hours. Running out of gas out here in the wild wasn’t uncommon, after all.

            With her duffel bag over one shoulder, Natasha set off at a brisk walk. It was still two miles to the quarter-mile of driveway that lead to the main house. Exhaustion was kept at bay by sheer determination, the idea that he was  _so close_.

            Her legs were shaking by the time she hit gravel. In the distance, the echoing  _crack_  of an axe striking wood brought a smile to her face. She couldn’t see him, not yet, not through the thick copse of trees that hid the main house from view. In her mind’s eye, though, Natasha saw Clint chopping wood in the clearing. Was he waiting? Did he occasionally look up at the road, hoping to see her walking toward him?

            Unable to help herself, Natasha smiled before she broke into a run.

~~*~~

            With the summer heat on his back, Clint swung the axe once more. Wood splintered perfectly, falling into the pile on either side of the chopping block. He didn’t really need wood at the moment, but autumn came swiftly, without warning, this far north. It was better to be over prepared than under.

            His squinted eyes cut from the axe to the road again. He didn’t bother fooling himself. Clint Barton was doing what he did best. It felt like the last ten years, all he did was watch, and wait for Natasha Romanoff.

            Her code had come while he was on a mission in Hungary. Two text messages from an unknown number – probably a burner cell.

             _Home compromised._

_Haven._

            Without bothering to confirm it with S.H.I.E.L.D. _,_ the man known as Hawkeye caught a flight. He stopped in so many airports he almost boarded another when he finally made it to Anchorage. Catching himself just in time, Clint reached Haven just quickly enough to catch the evening news.

            Natasha was on it, begging the Senate to arrest her.

            The arrow necklace he’d given her in Budapest was still around her neck.

            That was almost two weeks ago. By his Nat-Clock, she should be arriving today. Clint felt his eyes dart back to the road again, not really seeing it. It was habit, just as everything else was when it came to Natasha.

            This time, however, he noticed she was coming toward him.

            He plugged the axe into the block, reaching into his waistband for the semi-automatic he kept there. Though the last thing Clint wanted to do was pull a weapon on her, he couldn’t be too careful.

            She careened to a stop, pulling her own weapon out as she stood not five yards from him. They stood for a moment, barrel to barrel, eyes meeting across the sunny clearing that stood outside of their home.

            “You first.” Natasha demanded.

            Clint smiled. He always went first.

            “The first thing I ever said to you.”

            Natasha’s lips curved into the smallest version of a smile.

            “My name,” she said simply. "Natasha."

            Clint felt his heart do a double beat in his chest. Natasha lowered her weapon.

            “What is the last thing I said to you before the Hungary mission, Hawk?”

            He could see her hands trembling.

            “Don’t die while I’m gone, ok?”

            Chuckling, Clint stowed his gun back into the waistband of his jeans, moving closer as Natasha did the same. She was smiling, that smile that only he got to see and only when they were like this, alone.

            “I missed you.” Natasha said as he reached out to grasp her nape.

            “I missed you, too.” Clint whispered quietly, moving her closer until she stood flush against his chest. “We’re safe.”

            Natasha was still smiling as she leaned up on her toes, pressing her mouth against his. 


End file.
